Device for sharpening razors.



P. K FASSETT. nnvm: FOR SHARPENING RAZORS. 7 APPLICATION FILED JUNE 9, 19.11. @44 3 Patented Nov. 12, 1912.

' 2 SHEETS-*SHEBT l,

llll llll mmmmmf I M k v UNITED strArEsrn rENT OFFICE- FRANCIS K. FASSETT, DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO ALBERT BLAIR,;OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

DEVICE FOR SHARPENING RAZORS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 12, 1912.

Application filed .Tune 9, 1911. Serial No. 632,231.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS K. FASSETT,

a citizen of the United States, residing at kinds, but more especially those used in safety'zrazors. One of its objects is to produce a device wherewith any person, however vinexperienced he may be, can put as keen an edge on a blade as can be put on a blade by a skilful barber employing the most approved methods known to his art.

Another object is" to make a device which will be light and compact-,and require no adjustment.

These and other advantages are embodied in the construction shown in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is an end view of my sharpener, seen fromtheend at which blades are inserted, a portion of the main frame being removed; Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 3; Fig. 3 shows the geared end of the device with a portion of the mainframe removed; Figs. 4 and 5 are views of a holder for one form of blade; Figs. 6 and are different views of the plate which acts as a support for the carrier; Figs. 8 and 9 are views of the carrier; Fig. 10 is an enlarged view of certain parts; F1g. 11 is an enlarged transverse section of a roller; Fig.

12 is a transverse'section of a roller of modified construction; Figs. 13 and 14 show a blade holder for one type of blade; Figs. 15 and 16 show a holder-for another type of blade, and Fig. 17 shows a modification for the purpose of reversing the direction -of rotation of the rollers.

' Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout.

Referring to the drawings, the main frame 10 has a bush 11 secured in an. aperture in one of its sides ,,-and opposite this bush a plate 12, having a projection 13, is secured theprojections 13 and 15.- The curved recesses 17' in the slot 17 are for purpose which will be referred to later on.

A short, hollow shaft- 18 is titted to fate in the bush 11, the inner endof the shaft being reduced to receive the driving gear 19, the reduced portion however, ex.- tending some distance through the gear.

The gear is secured to the shaft by screws- 20, the ,same screws also passing through and securing a crank 21 to theshaft. A carrier 22, has upturned portions '23 and 24, each of which has a boreadapted,.m.- spcctively to slip over the reduced endot the shaftlS and the projection 15, there; by pivotally mounting the carrier in the main frame. The upturned ort-ion2t has lateral extensions 25',- each 0 .whichhas a.

hole to receive a shaft 26. .The other'zends of shafts 26 are turned down to fo'rmjshoul-v ders, and the reduced ends are inserted'in; holes formed in upturned portions 27, and

their ends headed down. A roller 28 isnrount ed to rotate upon each shaft-26;'agear 1 29- '51 is secured to'each roller by pins '30 and en meshed with the drivinggear"19. 011 viously, the rollers will be' driven in'l a direction opposite to that of thegearfllt);

should it he desired to have the rollers ro' tate in the same direction as the-driving gear, an intermediate gear could be inter posed between the driving gear and each of the gears 29. Fig. 17 shows a modifies-'- tion for this purpose; the upturn 23 is en'- larged to carry intermediate gears 46,which are mounted to rotate on suitable studs secured thereto. Gear 19 and gears 29, being reduced in size, are connected by the inter-' part of the shaft 18, while the smaller apertures permit the free passage of the shafts 26. The ends of the spring are confined between the gears 29 and the upturns 27, a fiber or other suitable washer 3 1 being interposed-between the gears and the spring.

A fiber or other suitable washer 35 sur-. rounds the shaft 18 and is confined between y the spring and the driving'gear; a similar washer, 36, is interposed between the driving gear and the upturned portion 2 Th spring being "bent into approximately 'the form shown in Fig. 10 which shows the positrons of the parts, it is obvious that when the gears QO-are brought close to the upturns 27,

5 as in Fig. 2, the efl'ect is to press the driving gear against the upturn 23, thereby producing a frict'onhl connection between thedriving gear and the carrier 92, which causes the latter to be rocked 'on its pivotal supports when the driving gear is rotated. be again referred to laterou. \Vhile in Figs. 2 and the spring 2-11 appears to press against the end of the bush 11, .it is not intended to create, auy friction at this perfectly free to rock upon its pivotal sup -ports, and sufficient end play is afforded for this purpose. The blade holder shown in Figs. A had 5 'is designed ,to support a blade havin' two cutting edges; a blade is. shown, in otted lines, in place' in Fig. 5'. Blades .of this style having apertures tolocate them in the razor-in which they/ 211 used, the same aper fdrmedinTits' inner face in which a thin plate 39 is secured, which plates extend latera'lly to a point nearthe cutting edge of 40 v the blade. v I p The upturned portion 24. of the carrier has slots 39, radiating--from opposite sides of-the aperture passes. When the carrier 18 in thep'osition shown in Fig. 3, these slots register with the slot 17 in the plate 12, and the -holder,-

with a. blade in place, may be inserted at this time. Referring to Fig. '2, itwill'" be seen that the crankacts as astop for the blade holder,- ahd that when .the holder is in its proper position,-tlie 'plates '39 have passed beyond the -upturnedportion 2 L,- thereby leaving the carrier free torock. But

the plates are too long to quiteemerge from treinities of the slotted 'projection' prevent the holder from; rotating. After the blade .is inplace in the sharpener, the crank is turned forward and backward, a few turns in each direction, this alternate rotating being continued-until a keen edge has been imparted to the blade. .of the crank in'either direction. does'nothing butrock the barrier, which will continue to p rock until ;a roller comes into contact with This will point; on the contrary, the. carrier'should be imparted'to the carrier by its frictionuhcon holder is closed. "The holder comprises a mentive' =or secondary rfriction',f:&which through which the projection 15,-

the slotin the projection 15, and the ex-' 'faee of the strop flat; rigid-razor strops The first movement the blade; the continuedm o vement of the crank thereafter causes the rollers to rotate. The frictional connection between the driving gear and the carrier, not, only causes'the carrier to rock, but, after the rollersbave' o engaged the blade and begin to rotate, this 7 .frictional connection causes the rollers to'be pressed against the blade. hen a double edged-blade is in the sharpenenfohe roller acts upon each edge of the blade, simultaneously. as is shown in Fig. 1. In this figure. supposing the gears to be directlyen meshed as in Fig. 3, the rollerswill rotate in the direction indicatedbythe arrows; when the direction of rotation of the crank is reversed, the carrierwill' be rocked it! the direction of the arrow shown on thefldotted. arc, and the rollers will he moved over into the positions indicated by dotted circles,- where they-will rotate in the direction in dirated by thefar row points 'on-said circles. Ina general way itmay bestated' thatf thef' degree of pressure of-the rollers againstf'thj edges of the blade willfdepend upon-f th'ejdra'gnection tojthe'drivin'g gearywhilesthiszjdrag creates the initial=pressi1re,- he friction-w dutcd] by the" surface offthe roller rub "ing against the bladegten'dsitoretardgthe a'oller;

dc-h retardation acting through thegeifrs, supplements the dragproduced by theffric tional connection and augments thepresslire of the roller against-the blade. 1This* atigcreases. as the speed of "-the-rollers:incijases,= is sufficient to warrant theprima'ry friction, z. e.', the; frictional connection-,dbeing looms paratively slight; it is also'worthywfinote that the primary friction 'is'somewhataug s mentedby the friction QIOdHQedEbetWBQn-theE ends, of the rollersand the ends 0f" the. p g L '1 'i 1 \Vhen a barber shops a razor, :he does' noti' pull his strop as tautxas he'can; instead;

he allows the strop to sag under thepressure of the blade; the'result being-that he cutting edge of the blade lieslina depress-' sion, this depression of course following the edge of the bladeas it moves -over1the.surface'of the strop. In other words, the strop curves around the cutting edge of the blade toan extent depending upon theitautnes'seqf ii the-st rop. This 18 not a mere acmdentmor si it due to lack of means for keeping the sun 7 v I have been made, and are now obtainablo'nn the market, but their use is practically con-n.

4 fined to .the inexperienced -and such st-rops are rarely if evereuse'd by :barberst- The in: I evitable honclusion .is :tliatnbest; results arc. '12:.-

"obtained by having thestromcurir'e ar'ouu'dn the, edge of\the b l ade;. To obtainja.similar;, condition Willi! the use oftheirollerm'zWhos ,L: curved surfac s are justltheppposite to' vii-at; is desired, I'prefer to eonstrnct the? is ping rollers in a manner which will now be described.

Referring tolhg. 2, the roller shown in section has a j'c'entral core 40, having a bore leather covering-43. This covering may be Cir treated by some one of the many processes wherewith razor strops are treated, and it is preferable to have the leather skived down to a thicknesswhich will render it very pliable. The edges of th'eleather, after being scar-fed, sh'opld be lapped and Cemented together; at each end of the roller the leather may be cemented or otherwise secured to the disks 41. such length that they will accommodate the blade and leave a reasonable distance between itsends and the disks 41, thereby afl'crding ample opportunity for the blade to form a depression in the surface of the roller. Various substances are adapted to be used for the filler 42, among which are felt and spongy rubber. A composition similar to that used in making inking rollers for printing presses may also be used. In Fig. 12 is shown a pneumatic roller, in

which a rubber bladder 44 is confined be- The bladder may be tween the disks 41. inflated in the same manner as are pneumatic tires, the air pump connection 45, being of substantially the usual. type. Fig. 11 is a transverse section of a roller showing exaggeratedly, the action of the blade ripon the roller, from which will be seen that the bladeis acted upon in substantially the same manner as is the barbers blade. The advantage of making the plates 38 broad enough to reach nearly to the edge of the blade is apparent, especially in the case of double edged blades which are very thin and flexible.

In Figs. 13 and 14 are shown a holder for a blade belonging to a well known safety razor; Figs. 15 and 16 show a holder for another well known razor. Each of these razors use single edged blades, but, obviously, the action oi the sharpener is the same as has been described, save that but one roller acts at a time. The recesses 17 in the plate 12, and the like recesses 39 in the slot 39 permit the passage of .the enlarged part of the blade shown in Figs. 15 and 16. Inasmuch as the blade is stationary while the sharpener isactuated, this device is clearly'not confined to sharpening blades that can be separated from their handles org, other supports; with slight The rollers are ofroller, it is clear, and Iwant it to be understood, that my invention is not confined touse as a stroppmg device, as, by SllbStltllt-' ing other rollers, cylindrical hones for example, the same mechanism is adapted to use forhoning razors. Furthermore,though the embodiment of my invention herein shown and described is intended for use principally by users of razors, the principles employed are applicable to a machine for sharpening razor blades on a commercial scale, even in a power driven, instead of a manually driven device.

llVhile the mechanism herein shown and described constitutes a preferred form of embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that other forms might be used, and yet come Within the scope of the appended claims. I

WVhat I claim is as follows:

1. In a razor sharpener of the character described, a stationary blade holder, a pivoted frame, a sharpening roller. journaled in said frame, a driving pinion rotatably supported-adjacent the blade holder, and in alinement with the axis of the pivoted frame, a pinion carried by the sharpening roller and meshing with said drive pinion, and frictional means tending to hold said sharpening roller against rotation.

2..A razor sharpening device comprising a main frame, a carrier pivotally mounted upon said main frame, a pair of rollers mounted upon the carrier, their axes being parallel with'that of'the carrier, a blade holder carried by the main frame, a driving gear mounted with its axis in aline- ,ment with that of the carrier, means for rotating said carrier, gears mounted upon the rollers and driven by the driving gear, and a frictional connection between the driving gear and the ca rrier whereby, when the driving gear is'rotate'd in one direction, the carrier is rocked and one of the rollers caused to contact with the cutting edges of a blade carried by the blade holder, and whensaid gear is rotated in the other direction, the other roller is caused to contact with the opposite edge of said cutting edge, the continued rotation of the gear in either direc tion causing the rollers to rotate.

3. A razor sharpeningdevice comprising a main frame, a carrier pivotally mounted upon said main frame, a air of rollers mounted upon the carrier, t eir axes being parallel with that of the carrier, a blade holder adapted to hold ablade having two cutting edges carried by said frame, a driving gear mounted with its axis in alinement with that of the carrier, means for rotating said gear, gears mounted upon the rollers and driven by the driving gear, and a frictional connection between the driving gear and the carrier whereby when the driving gear is'rotated in one direction the carrier 1. it v 55GB? is rocked and the rollers caused to contact With the cutting edges of a two-edged blade carried by the blade holder, one roller engaging each edge, and when the driving gear is rotated in the opposite direction the carrier is rocked and each roller caused to contact with the side of the .cutting blade that cannot be engaged by the other roller, con tinued; rotation of the driving gear in either direction causing the rollers to rotate and simultaneously act upon each edge of the blade.

4. A razor sharpening device comprising a main frame, a carrier pivotally mounted upon said main frame, a pair of rollers mounted upon the carrier, their axes being parallel with thatof the carrier, said rollers having embodied in their construction material of such a character as to give them elastic properties, a blade holder carried by the main frame, a driving gear mounted With its axis in alinement with that of the carrier, means for rotating said gear, gears mounted upon the rollers and driven by the driving gear, and a frictional connection between the driving gear and the carrier, whereby when the driving gear is rotated in one direction, the carrier is rocked, and one of the rollers caused to contact with the cutting edge of a blade, held by the blade holder, and when said gear is rotated in the other direction, the other roller is caused to contact with the opposite side of said cut ting edge, the continued rotation of the gear in either direction causing the rollers to ro'- tate. v

5. A razor sharpening device comprising a pair of sharpening rollers, a stationary blade holder adapted to hold a blade having two cutting edges, means for moving the rollers, one to engage and press against the side of one cutting edge and the other to simultaneously engage and press against the opposite side of the-ether cutting edg means for moving the rollers to engage simultaneously and press against the re maining side of the cutting edge, each roller remaining on and engaging the same side of both cutting edges, and means for rotating the rollers.

63. In arrazor sharpener of the character described, a main frame, means for fixedly supporting a double edged blade in said main frame, a carrier pivotally supported in naled in said carrier, a blade holder. for sup porting a double edged bladepositioned between the sharpening rollers of said carrier and extending parallel thereto, and means for shifting said carrier and blade holder one relatively to the other to cause the sharpening rollers of tie carrier to alternately contact-With the opposite faces of the cutting edges of a blade carried by said blade holder.

rnauors t, rassnrr. H

Witnesses CHAS. D. BRoivsoN, C. H. Kansas. 

